Clothing shop closes in Byron CBD

A BYRON BAY clothing store has joined the lengthening list of business casualties in town.

Jay Jays, located in the centre of the Lawson Street shopping strip, will shut its doors in September.

Staff were informed of the closure on Thursday. However, no one from the shop was available for comment yesterday.

TheNorthern Star also sought comment from Jay Jays parent company, the Just Group – which also owns the Just Jeans and Portmans fashion retailers – but our calls were not returned.

Jay Jays closely follows Spar Supermarket and RetraVision to the Byron Bay corporate grave, as the turnover in the centre of town continues apace.

Spar closed in June after barely a year trying to compete with the all-dominant Woolworths.

RetraVision fared better, clocking up 35 years before succumbing to a combination of increased charges and a shopfront it had outgrown.

That space, in a prime location on Jonson Street, will soon become a pharmacy.

Icon Books at the southern end of Jonson Street also called it a day earlier this year.

Speaking to TheNorthern Star earlier this month regarding the spate of business closures, business lobby group Byron United vice-president Sevegne Newton said the closure of businesses pointed to a larger problem in the tourist town – the fact that many businesses were finding it impossible to survive.

“Byron Bay just doesn’t have the people coming through any more to support local businesses,” Ms Newton said.

“If you don’t have the tourist numbers you get this trickle-down. The Byron Shire Council doesn’t want to encourage tourism, but it’s the town’s lifeblood.”